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Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Book Club: August

It's book club time, but before we get to that we wanted to announce the winner of our Bison Cooler giveaway.

Congratulations to Jamie S. Clark!!!

Be sure to email us at themagnoliamamas@gmail.com to claim your prize and we will get all the details from you! If you didn't win and are still interested in one of these coolers, you can order your very own HERE.

Now onto our book club for the month. We love summer because we can actually get a lot of reading done that we can't during the busy school year. We were so excited to learn that one of our favorite writers, Mary Kay Andrews, was coming out with a new book just in time for us to both enjoy beachside (Is there any other place to read an MK book?). Today we will discuss July's selection, Beach Town, and announce our August selection. Fair warning - we just had to keep the summer in the south theme going for another month. These Georgia peaches aren't ready for summer to end any time soon!

Carrie Beth's Review:
Mary Kay Andrews is one of my favorite authors. I have loved all of her books, mostly because they are fun and easy to read. I like books that I can pick up here and there when I have a little time, read a few chapters and get lost in the book for a while. I don't want to have to think too hard or figure out a mystery...I just want to read and enjoy and that is what these books do for me.

I loved the story of Beach Town and the main character, Greer. It was fun to get a behind the scenes look at the movie industry and learn all about what really happens and goes into making a movie. So many details were shared that I never would have even thought about.

Also, the setting of this book was intriguing. I loved reading about the almost forgotten coastal town in Florida and all of the people who had lived there for years and years. There was a lot of history here and having a big-time movie production come to town definitely stirred things up a bit and gave them excitement (good and bad).

Overall, this was the perfect summer fun read and I hope y'all enjoyed it as much as I did!

Jen's Review:
I love Mary Kay Andrews books, and Beach Town did not disappoint. I love how MKA always chooses southern settings for her novels. It just makes me feel at home, and during Beach Town I found myself wanting to visit Cypress Key. I just love sleepy small beach towns, and loved the peek at a slightly different Florida than what we are typically used to.

Beach Town was just what I was looking for in a book this month. I wanted something light and fun while traveling and this was perfect. I loved learning about Greer and following along her journey and how the people of Cypress Key began to ground her in a her typically Hollywood paced life. The push and pull of her relationship with Eb was fun to follow along and I was glad of how their romance ended up wrapping up.

The parent issues in this book made me a little sad, and I was appreciative of how they were tied into the story and molded the characters. I felt like everything worked out in the end the way it should have. Typically MKA books take a more humorous approach, but I felt in Beach Town she was a little grittier than normal.

At the end of the book, I wanted to know a little bit more about their life once the movie wrapped. Maybe there will be a sequel?? And I am hoping my daughter never ever meets a Kregg. :)

Now to Discuss: Did you enjoy Beach Town? What did you think of the romance between Eb and Greer? What did you think of the dad relationships in the book? What surprised you about the novel?

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Having watched her life turn into a nor'easter, 34-year-old Leelee Satterfield is back home in the South, ready to pick back up where she left off. But that's a task easier said then done…Leelee's a single mom, still dreaming of the Vermonter who stole her heart, and accompanied by her three best friends who pepper her with advice, nudging and peach daiquiris, Leelee opens another restaurant and learns she has to prove herself yet again. Filled with heart and humor, women's fiction fans will delight in Yankee Doodle Dixie.

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